Spain drops Guantanamo case bid

Spanish authorities have dropped extradition proceedings against former Guantanamo Bay detainees from Britain, their solicitor has said.

Jamil el-Banna and Omar Deghayes returned to the UK in December but were facing extradition to Spain.

On arrival the men were held under European arrest warrants alleging they were part of an al-Qaeda cell in Spain.

Legal proceedings will formally end after a hearing at City of Westminster Magistrates' Court.

'Humane and sensible'

The Spanish authorities accused the men of being part of a cell linked to terrorists involved in the Madrid and Casablanca bombings.

Mr el-Banna, 45, from London, and Mr Deghayes, 38, of Brighton, East Sussex were tagged and placed under curfew following their release on bail.

"I'm delighted, I'm very happy and so is the whole family"
Omar Deghayes

Their curfews have now been lifted, according to the men's lawyer.

Clive Stafford Smith, founder of campaigning group Reprieve, who represented both men, said: "It is based on the fact that these guys have suffered enough. They have been psychologically scarred from what happened to them in Guantanamo and before.

"This is obviously a humane and sensible response from the Spanish authorities - albeit belated."

The pair's representative Gareth Peirce said: "It should have never, never happened. It caused immeasurable extra anguish for these men and their families.

"I can't think of any circumstances in which these men, emerging from a concentration camp, where they experienced torture, should be detained by any other state in the world.

"This is the end of a sorry chapter in a very long sorry story."

Mr Deghayes told the BBC he was "very happy and really delighted".

"I wasn't expecting this good news," he said.

"I'm delighted, I'm very happy and so is the whole family."